"admiring and ferocious" - France Inter "This first biography, fed by many first-rate witnesses... we laugh, we shudder, we admire." - Elle On the last morning of his life, Karl Lagerfeld's only companion was Sebastien, his bodyguard and right-hand man. The king of fashion insisted on being cremated, along with his universally recognisable 'gear' - the dark glasses and high starched collar that served as a bastion for his secrets. It is only now that witnesses have begun to talk. Thus emerges the story of Karl Lagerfeld: his father's past in the heart of wartime Germany, his rivalry with Yves Saint Laurent (enflamed by his only love, Jacques de Bascher) and the networks he forged with the biggest luxury manufacturers in the world as he compiled his vast fortune. Truly an unparalleled icon in the history of fashion, Lagerfeld's legacy lives on today. AUTHOR: Raphaelle Bacque is one of today's best-known contemporary journalists. Her reputation is built on the bestsellers she has authored alone or co-authored with Ariane Chemin (Les Strauss-Kahn, La femme fatale, Richie, Le dernier mort de Mitterrand...), as well as her investigations published in Le Monde. SELLING POINTS: . An intimate and well-documented biography of Karl Lagerfeld, ex-creative director of Chanel and international fashion icon . Reveals the man behind the mask: the great couturier, the adorer of women, the unrepentant provocateur . A huge bestseller in France - over 40,000 copies sold . Worldwide publication in English to mark the first anniversary of his death . A luxurious hardback, finished with quarter-bound cloth 12 b/w images